Electric connector or terminal



May 23, 1939.

J. J. JOLLIFFE 2,159,163

ELECTRIC CONNECTOR OR TERMINAL Filed April 25, 1956 may I INVENTOR MW WW ATTORNE Patented May 23, 1939 ELECTRIC CONNECTOR R TERDIINAL John J. Jollifie, Hawthorne, N. J., assignor to The Okonite Company, Passaic, N. J., a corporation of New Jersey Application April 25,

1 Claim.

This invention relates to improvements in electrical connectors, and is particularly directed to attachment plugs for various electrical devices such as electric irons, toasters and the like.

In such devices, as heretofore constructed, the electric cord is subject to a great deal of twisting at the plug, and also to a combination of flexing and tension forces. For example, with cords and plugs for electric irons, there is a short quick bending action of the cord without a great deal of twisting, when the cord is new, but after a few hours of service there is a direct twisting of the cord. This twisting apparently builds up until it finally becomes a force of considerable magnitude and the cord seems to retain this twist until it is disassembled from the appliance. The next time the cord is used this twisting reoccurs. Apparently the twisting action is always in the same direction and at the same rate. Oftentimes the cord is subjected to sufiicient tension to pull the plug from its receptacle; this of course places a severe strain on the cord and tends to pull the conductors free from their terminals.

The construction of the device of the present application is such as to overcome these defects or to eliminate their detrimental efiect on the device as a whole. For example, my device is so constructed that tension on the cord in a direction to pull the attachment plug out of its receptacle is taken up and absorbed by a spring, one end of which is attached to the plug and the other to the cord. Thus no strain is brought on the cord conductors at their point of attachment to the plug terminals. The twisting of the cord above referred to is resisted by this same spring so that there can be, in ordinary usage, no twisting of the conductors at the point of attachment to the plug terminals.

I might say that by actual comparative tests my device has withstood twenty-five times the twisting that the prior type of cord and plug will withstand.

In the accompanying drawing wherein I have illustrated one embodiment of my invention:

Fig. 1 is a sectional view of my improved attachment plug with the electric cord in place; and

Fig. 2 is a sectional view on line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

1936, Serial No. 76,328

Referring to the drawing in detail, I designates a plug made up of sections 2 and 3 of moulded insulating material secured to each other in any suitable manner and provided internally with split female terminal members 4 and 5.

6 designates an electric cord, the ends of the conductors 1 of which are connected to the terminal members 4 and 5 by means of screws 8. Surrounding the cord 6 is a spring member 9 the end of which extends into the top of the connector I and is held against turning therein by making the end of the spring out-of-round in cross section and recessing the plug to conform with this end of the spring, or in any other suitable fashion.

The outer end of this spring is moulded or otherwise rigidly attached to the cord 6 as shown at II].

It will be appreciated from the foregoing description that by anchoring the spring 9 at one end to the plug I and at its other end to the cord 6, the twisting point of the cord has been moved outside the connector entirely and to a point remote from the connection of the conductors l of the cord to the terminals 4 and 5.

Inasmuch as twisting of the cord is no longer localized within the plug, rupturing of the cord is reduced to a minimum.

It is to be understood that various changes and modifications may be made in the structure illustrated Without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention.

What I claim is:

An electric connector comprising a pair of moulded sections of insulating material, a coil spring one end of which is received between said and sections.

JOHN J. JOLLIFFE. 

